Peace Corps Community in the News
Week of January 26, 2025
Before I Was a Politico and a Journalist, I Was a U.S. Capitol Police Officer, by Chris Matthews in Washington Monthly | January 24, 2025.
“In 1971, I served as a Capitol Policeman. A decade later, I was the chief of staff to Speaker of the House Thomas P. “Tip” O’Neill, Jr. I knew what it was like to check the doors as a Capitol cop and to have a prime office only a few feet from the Speaker’s Door, where the attackers fought their way viciously past police for further bedlam into the House chamber itself.” —Chris Matthews (Swaziland 1968-70).
Illinois alumna talks career, transformative experiences during inaugural speaker series, by Analicia Haynes in Illinois International News | January 25, 2025.
Annie Jones joined the Peace Corps right out of college and volunteered in Ethiopia (2018-20). When her Peace Corps tour ended, she said her next step, at first, was grad school. However, that all changed when she discovered a job listing that was posted in a “Return from Peace Corps” Facebook group page.
West Middle's Linda Flohr recognized by White House with STEM award, by Nathan Deal in The Daily Sentinel | January 26, 2025.
Linda Flohr began her career in the Peace Corps, teaching science and math at the Papitalai Secondary School in Papua New Guinea. She returned to the U.S. and taught in Philadelphia, receiving her master’s degree in education from Temple University in the process. She wanted to move closer to home — that being New Mexico for her — so she took a job teaching in Glenwood Springs in 2002.
Jim Belote — First winter burial in decades, by Jennifer Donovan in The Daily Mining Gazette | January 26, 2025.
The Belotes met decades ago while serving in the Peace Corps in Ecuador (1962-64). They witnessed a number of Ecuadorian burials, done traditionally, with no embalming, no vaults, brightly painted, biodegradable caskets and rose petals tossed into the grave. That’s what they agreed they wanted for themselves.
Researchers explore strategies to aid smallholder fish farmers in Zambia, by Brandon Moss in Agrifocus Africa | January 27, 2025.
Jacob Johnson served a two-and-a-half-year stint as a Peace Corps volunteer in Zambia (2013-15) a decade ago, and his time there allowed him to learn the local language, local customs and ways to get around in rural Africa, he explained, noting the knowledge was pivotal for this study.
A school garden supports education and nutrition in The Gambia, by Alice H. on PeaceCorps.gov | January 27, 2025.
This innovative project has two major benefits: raising income and increasing access to nutritious food for students. My counterpart and I secured a Peace Corps grant to finance construction of a durable fence. The community contributed skills and unskilled labor. Ultimately, it only took two weeks for the land to be fenced, plowed, and planted, thanks to support from the community.
PEPFAR funding pause risks HIV mutations and thousands of deaths worldwide, a petition campaign by Nora Eiesland on MOVEON.org | January 27, 2025.
Did we learn nothing from COVID? Diseases don’t stay within country borders. This program funds our Peace Corps grants that all the PC volunteers rely on. This may even be more devastating to global health than the WHO cuts.
Jim Murray’s art, from Yosemite to the Southwest, by Bondo Wyszpolski in Easy Reader News |January 29, 2025.
Among the remarkable artists living locally, one who stands out and apart from most is Jim Murray (Dominica 1966-68). If he’s not always in the foreground then he’s certainly in the background, pursuing his projects with a sharp focus and concentration.
Seasoned Workers & Comp, Personal Injury Attorney George Berens Is Newest Associate at Sieben Carey, in Duluth News Tribune | January 29, 2025.
In addition to his legal expertise, George Berens (Paraguay 2004-06) has a long history of public service. He served in the Peace Corps in Paraguay. During law school, he continued his commitment to underserved communities through volunteer work with the Minnesota Justice Foundation and the Santiago Public Defender’s Office in Santiago, Chile.
Meet the cast of Survivor 48, by Dalton Ross in Entertainment Weekly | January 29, 2025.
Why do you want to be part of Survivor? Mary Zheng (South Africa 2019): “I’ve done Peace Corps, AmeriCorps, and hitchhiked across the Mediterranean. It’s been awhile since I’ve challenged myself. This game will push you to your limits — emotionally and physically — and I’m dying to be pushed there and then push past it!”
Pittsford’s Stephen Belcher brings African mythology to America, by Steven Jupiter in The Reporter | January 29, 2025.
Pittsford, Vermont’s Stephen Belcher (Mauritania 1987-90) is deeply knowledgeable about African mythology. In fact, he’s published several collections of African myths and a novel based on his passion for them. Belcher first came into contact with African culture when he was a child in the 1950s. His father was a diplomat in the U.S. Foreign Service and the family moved all around the African continent: Egypt, Nigeria, Benin, Tanzania.
Congrats! Third grade teacher Laura Negi wins Brevard Teacher of the Year Award, by Finch Walker in Florida Today | January 30, 2025.
Laura Negi (Mongolia 2008-10) credited her time serving in the Peace Corps, where she taught English as a second language in Mongolia, as helping prepare her for the classroom. "It was in Mongolia that I learned the students are my family," she said. "I learned how to serve with my whole heart." It's that care, she believes, that helps her be an excellent educator.
Jenny Berger, MBA, CEO, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Big Sky Country Inducted into the Prestigious Marquis Who's Who Biographical Registry, in 24-7 Press Release | January 30, 2025.
Jenny Berger's professional journey began in education, working as a math teacher at an alternative school from 2008 to 2009. Additionally, she served as a math and science teacher with the Peace Corps in Kenya from 2006 to 2008, where she contributed to educational development in underserved communities.
Risch proposes bill to block US foreign aid from funding abortions, by Brooke Singman on AOL News | January 30, 2025.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and Republican senators on Thursday are expected to roll out a measure that would prohibit the use of U.S. foreign aid funds for abortions. The bill, titled "the American Values Act," also would permanently enact restrictions on the use of funds made available to the Peace Corps to pay for abortions.
A Returned Volunteer's service to Ukraine goes virtual, by By Sharece Bunn on PeaceCorps.gov | January 30, 2025.
Andrea M. retired from finance in her early 50s and began a new career in teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL). Andrea has taught abroad with the Department of State, worked in university classrooms, and tutored individuals both in person and online. But it was her passion for service and commitment to Ukraine that brought her back to the Peace Corps as a Virtual Service Pilot Participant in 2023.
